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Simple Guide For Router To Router Cascading

When you extend your current network, you may need to add more routers to the existing network. Without knowing how to perform router cascading, you will fail to add extra router to the network successfully. In this tutorial you will learn how to connect extra routers to the current network by cascading routers without having any network issues. There are two ways to cascade a router to another router. Before configuring the second router for router cascade, make sure that it is not connected to the main router (where the broadband modem is connected).

Different Methods to Cascade Two Routers

LAN to LAN Router Cascade

Connecting one of the Ethernet ports (LAN ports) of the second Router to one of the Ethernet ports (LAN ports) of the main router. In this method, the devices connected to the second router and the devices connected to the first router are in same network and can communicate each other directly.

WAN to LAN Router Cascade

Connecting the Internet port (WAN port) of the second Router to one of the Ethernet ports (LAN ports) of the main router. In this method, we are creating two different networks with different network addresses.

Let us check each methods to connect two routers to extend a network. Each methods have different effect in extending a network. Before going to configure settings on second router, you must have the IP address of the first router.

LAN to LAN Router Cascading Method

This method is used when you want to use same network address on devices connected to the second router. Here the second router is acting like a switch to extend your current network.

When the router’s web-based setup page appears, look for Local IP Address and change it to “192.168.X.Y { Most of the times router IP address is 192.168.X.1 where X and Y starts from 0 to 255 }. We must ensure that Y is a number between 0 to 255 and is out of the DHCP range of router 1.

Eg: Assign IP address 192.168.X.200 (Where X is the same value as in the router 1. Eg X value of router 1 with address 192.168.1.5 is 1) to second router where the IP address of first router(main router connected to the modem) is 192.168.X.1

Disable DHCP On Router 2

When the web-based setup page opens, look for DHCP Server and click Disable. Do not forget to save settings. Click Advanced Routing and change Operating Mode to Router.(Depends on the router models and vendors this may change}.

Connect Router 2 to Router 1

Connect LAN Port of Router 1 to LAN Port of Router 2 using an Ethernet cable. Connect a standard Ethernet network cable to one of the numbered Ethernet ports on the main router, where the broadband modem is connected. Then, connect the other end of the Ethernet cable to the Ethernet port of the router that you have just configured.

If main router has IP address of 192.168.0.1 with DHCP range 100, then the second router should have an IP address of 192.168.0.101. Then only this kind of router cascade works.

Many users use this method to cascade a new wireless router with existing wired router to extend the router 1 to connect other wireless devices and still have the same network addresses assigned by first router. This method is very popular when a user need to cascade a wireless router with another existing router in the network. Do not confuse this method with step to cascade two wireless routers.

WAN to LAN Router Cascade(Method 2)

Before you connect a router to another router in WAN to LAN cascade Method, make sure that both routers have different IP addresses. If both routers have the same IP address, you need to change the IP address of the second router to prevent any conflict. Steps to configure second router in WAN to LAN cascading method are:

Make sure Both Routers have Different Network Address

If both routers have same network address (check the third octet and make sure both routers have different third octet number. Eg: 192.168.1.5 for router 1 and 192.168.2.1 for second router). If both routers have same third octet number, proceed to step 2.

Change Third Octet of Router 2 IP Address

Access the second router’s web-based setup page and look for Local IP Address and change it to “192.168.X.1 Where X is any number between 0 to 255 except the number in first router.[ie: If the IP address of the first router is 192.168.5.1 the X of second router is any number between 0 to 255 other than 5]. Do not forget to save settings.

Make sure DHCP server on second router is on

Connect Second router to WAN port of First router

Connect a standard Ethernet network cable to one of the numbered Ethernet ports on the main router, where the broadband modem is connected. Then connect the other end of the Ethernet cable to the Internet port of the router that you have just configured.

One of the most asked question from my readers is about possible issues with cascading routers from different vendors. There is no issues with cascading routers from different vendors. You won't face any issues with cascading a Linksys router with Belkin router or D-Link router because router cascading is vendor free.

Tutorials Related to Router Cascading

Cascading three routers

In a bigger network, you may need to cascade more than two routers. If you want to cascade third router to the second router, follow the instructions provided in the link below.How to Connect Third Router to Second Router

Router cascading and Internet Speed

Some users complains about reduced Internet speed after performing router cascade. The below link shows some instructions to troubleshoot the lose in Internet speed and some practical steps to improve the Internet speed after conducting two routers. How to speed up your Internet connection

Thank goodness. There are so many guides to doing this online, but so many of them assume the reader is ENTIRELY incompetent. Not to mention many of them refer to specific models only.The subsequent clutter and excessive information in such guides made them neigh unusable.

Traditionally Wireless routers are not allowed to cascade wireless but you can do it if if both routers are WDS enabled. You may need third party firmware to do wireless cascade. To know more details about WDS please click on the link below.

I was planning on running a powerline connection from the main router to a more centralized location and connect the secondary router. I was going to disable the wireless features on the main router and only use the secondary router for wireless access. In this case do you recommend WAN to LAN or LAN to LAN?

I have a 2wire dsl wireless modem (2701hg-b) which doesn't reach out to my husbands mancave which is triple insulated bc we have a band,so we ran some cat5 out there & I then tried this method with the 2nd router being a linksys wireless- g model wrt54GL. We only want to use the wireless part of the linksys router to connect to our iPhones & iPads when we are out in mancave. It shows the network & will join but then Internet doesn't work. Is there some other step we need? I used the LAN to LAN method. Don't want to turn off wireless signal on main router bc have other wireless devices in the house. Please help!

Ok, I tried both methods & several others & couldn't get it to work then I couldn't get on the Internet at all on even my wired computer using my 2wire. I had to unhook Ethernet from the linksys router & refresh my 2wire b4 it would work again. I looked at the link that you sent me & my setupn page on the linksys router is nothing like that. It has options for acces point, wds & access point, bridge mode & 2 others cant remember off top off my head. It was already on access point & their was nothing about this in any artcle so i left it on there, should i have changed that? earlier when I set it up, I used my laptop which was connected wirelessly to the 2wire (it wouldn't work hooked to my desktop that the 2wire is wired to) I did check it to make sure I could get on Internet & it worked fine , which now that I think about, is weird bc it wasn't plugged into the 2wire at all. So was it picking up the wireless signal from the 2wire? Is there something else I could use besides the linksys router that would be easier ? Don't wanna spend a lot of money, mancave toys already cost enough, lol! thanks!

Since you mentioned your iPhones can connect the wireless network from Linksys but unable to access Internet, it seems your Linksys router doesn't get Internet from your DSL modem.So please follow the steps below.

1. Connect your computer/laptop to WRT54GL with a cable (LAN Port1 of Linksys)

Ok, I tried this & it still didn't work. On iPhones & iPad & laptop, it shows the wireless network & you can connect to it, but when you try to search the Internet, it won't work & tells you there's a connection error. If you have an email address or some way for me to post pics on this blog I would show you what my router setting page looks like so you could see if I'm doing something wrong. Thanks for all your help!

Can any and all routers be cascaded or only certain ones? Thanks to your tutorial I was able to change the IP address on my Cisco E2500 and connected it's WAN port to a LAN port of my main router (TP-Link R470T+) and it worked flawlessly. Then I tried my new EnGenius ESR150H router/AP and couldn't make it work for the life of me. Called EnGenius and they couldn't make it work either from LAN to WAN. They sent me to "Level 2" tech support and they couldn't make it work either. It seems to work okay LAN to LAN but I didn't want it that way and think that EnGenius tech support and I are both missing something... hence my question, "can any and all router/AP units be cascaded?"

i already have 2 routers connected using your technique. and i want to add another router. so i connected the new router with different IP address. the problem is, i can only connect to the internet if i use 1 meter length of LAN cable, but i cannot connect if i use the longer 15 meters cable... need your help.. thanks...